November 2, 2024:
The 3 temptations of Christ are similar to Trump’s temptations to evangelicals
As I consider the temptations in my own life, I realize the current evangelical leadership has fallen prey to the temptations offered by Donald Trump. Even more importantly, these temptations are eerily similar to the temptations the Devil proposed to Jesus Christ before Jesus began his ministry. For those who do not know this story, according to the Bible, there was a time before Jesus started his ministry when he went into the desert to fast and prepare himself to do his work. At this time, the Devil came to Jesus to offer the same three temptations that pull everyone off of their true path. These also are the same temptations Trump has offered to the evangelical movement. The difference is that — unlike Jesus — the evangelical movement has chosen to follow Trump as he leads them further away from God and closer to the path set forth by the Devil himself.
(Baptist News Global 11/6/24) READMORE>>>>>
As I consider the temptations in my own life, I realize the current evangelical leadership has fallen prey to the temptations offered by Donald Trump. Even more importantly, these temptations are eerily similar to the temptations the Devil proposed to Jesus Christ before Jesus began his ministry. For those who do not know this story, according to the Bible, there was a time before Jesus started his ministry when he went into the desert to fast and prepare himself to do his work. At this time, the Devil came to Jesus to offer the same three temptations that pull everyone off of their true path. These also are the same temptations Trump has offered to the evangelical movement. The difference is that — unlike Jesus — the evangelical movement has chosen to follow Trump as he leads them further away from God and closer to the path set forth by the Devil himself.
(Baptist News Global 11/6/24) READMORE>>>>>
November 5, 2024:
Voting in a fallen world
The first thing that Christians should contemplate in this election is the fact—the tragic fact—that we live in a fallen world. That means that our politics is not about building toward an earthly utopia. It is about mitigating the effects of evil. Utopian politics of the left and right have always ended with tragedy, sometimes on a scale that is hard to imagine. And as we live in a fallen world, political life, rather like the tragic dramas of ancient Greece, involves contexts where moral norms are often set in conflict with each other at the ballot box. Indeed, German theologian Helmut Thielicke—a man who lived at a time and in a place where political choices were as stark as they were dark—drew on the analogy with Greek tragedy several times to express the difficulties Christians face in the realm of politics.
(World 11/5/24) READMORE>>>>>
The first thing that Christians should contemplate in this election is the fact—the tragic fact—that we live in a fallen world. That means that our politics is not about building toward an earthly utopia. It is about mitigating the effects of evil. Utopian politics of the left and right have always ended with tragedy, sometimes on a scale that is hard to imagine. And as we live in a fallen world, political life, rather like the tragic dramas of ancient Greece, involves contexts where moral norms are often set in conflict with each other at the ballot box. Indeed, German theologian Helmut Thielicke—a man who lived at a time and in a place where political choices were as stark as they were dark—drew on the analogy with Greek tragedy several times to express the difficulties Christians face in the realm of politics.
(World 11/5/24) READMORE>>>>>
What Christian nationalism has in store for Jews and other religious minorities
For an energetic subset of supporters, the promise of Donald Trump’s MAGA movement centers on increasing the influence of Christianity in American life and returning the country to what they see as its founding Christian ideals. Scholars say that through their devotion to Trump, these Christian nationalists have claimed a prominent, mainstream place in Republican politics — a phenomenon that has alarmed Jews and other religious minorities.
And regardless of the result of the presidential election, they aren’t going away, said Julie Ingersoll, a professor of religious studies at the University of North Florida.
(Jewish Telegraphic Agency 11/5/24) READMORE>>>>>
For an energetic subset of supporters, the promise of Donald Trump’s MAGA movement centers on increasing the influence of Christianity in American life and returning the country to what they see as its founding Christian ideals. Scholars say that through their devotion to Trump, these Christian nationalists have claimed a prominent, mainstream place in Republican politics — a phenomenon that has alarmed Jews and other religious minorities.
And regardless of the result of the presidential election, they aren’t going away, said Julie Ingersoll, a professor of religious studies at the University of North Florida.
(Jewish Telegraphic Agency 11/5/24) READMORE>>>>>
November 2, 2024:
Justin Welby called to repent over gay sex position
Faithful, orthodox Anglicans in the England have once again been encouraged by the courage and clarity of the leaders of the Gafcon movement. In a Reformation Day Statement, the Primates Council of Gafcon rebuked Justin Welby for his comments to Alastair Campbell and called for his personal repentance."While he may claim not to have changed the doctrine of marriage, the Archbishop of Canterbury has demonstrably changed the doctrine of sin, by promoting the sanctification of sin by means of a divine blessing," they said in a statement. The continued, "We are guided by Jesus' solemn words of warning to the Church of Thyatira, because, 'they tolerate the teaching of Jezebel,' which endorses sexual immorality. Only judgment awaits Jezebel and all who follow her, unless they repent (Revelation 2:21-22; 22:15). Any toleration, let alone endorsement, of immorality is liable to God's judgment. (Premier Christianity 11/2/24) READMORE>>>>>
Faithful, orthodox Anglicans in the England have once again been encouraged by the courage and clarity of the leaders of the Gafcon movement. In a Reformation Day Statement, the Primates Council of Gafcon rebuked Justin Welby for his comments to Alastair Campbell and called for his personal repentance."While he may claim not to have changed the doctrine of marriage, the Archbishop of Canterbury has demonstrably changed the doctrine of sin, by promoting the sanctification of sin by means of a divine blessing," they said in a statement. The continued, "We are guided by Jesus' solemn words of warning to the Church of Thyatira, because, 'they tolerate the teaching of Jezebel,' which endorses sexual immorality. Only judgment awaits Jezebel and all who follow her, unless they repent (Revelation 2:21-22; 22:15). Any toleration, let alone endorsement, of immorality is liable to God's judgment. (Premier Christianity 11/2/24) READMORE>>>>>